Shaped charges for oilfield perforation services were initially developed using results of surface penetration tests. Designers relied on their intuition and examination of perforations in steel targets to improve their designs. However, these examinations could not enable evaluation of the numerous factors that affected shaped charge performance. Even when testing Read more
A few years after the first commercial use of shaped charges, oilfield services companies directed some of their attention away from product performance and considered an additional topic: safety. An accidental detonation of a shaped charge could damage equipment and the wellbore. Such an event could also be deadly to Read more
Oilfield services companies knew that recovering oil and gas required numerous perforations in relatively thin formation layers. To obtain the maximum perforation of these layers, companies developed carriers housing multiple shaped charges placed within a few inches of each other. Field experience with these carriers frequently showed disappointing results; the Read more
Companies that offered shaped charge perforation regarded deep perforation depth as crucial for their sales. Some oilfield services companies sought to increase jet penetration to offer a better product than competitors. Determining methods to improve jet penetration became a priority. One way to achieve this goal was to control the Read more
Shaped charge testing programs performed by oilfield services companies revealed several useful facts about liners. Copper or steel liners produced jets that usually achieved the greatest penetration depths. Jets from glass liners did not penetrate as well, but they produced no slugs and smaller amounts of debris.1 Decreasing the cone Read more
In 1947, Robert McLemore, an engineer at Well Explosives, Inc., faced a challenge. His company was one of many that offered shaped charge perforation services for the oil field. In such a competitive market, McLemore needed information for designing devices that would outperform the competition. The basic problem for McLemore, Read more
Clyde Davis was a gifted engineer who worked at the Eastern Laboratory of the E. I. DuPont de Nemours Company (DuPont). During World War II, he and his design group determined optimum values for parameters used in making shaped charge weapons, including the bazooka rocket warhead.1 The end of the Read more
Quick question: What do wood, plastic, cardboard, cement, paper, steel, glass, and aluminum have in common? Answer: They were all considered as materials for expendable shaped charge carriers. Selecting the Best Material Oilfield services companies knew they had to detonate multiple shaped charges to perforate a formation adequately and enable Read more
Oilfield services companies faced significant challenges when designing their shaped charges, and no help was available from a prime source. The U.S. military still withheld its vast shaped charge knowledge that was obtained during wartime testing and research. Consequently, oilfield services companies were forced to spend time and money to Read more
In the 1945 to 1947 timeframe, enthusiasm and optimism was high about possible uses of shaped charges, as were creative ideas that appeared in patents submitted to the U.S. Patent Office. A trio of engineers at the Gulf Research and Development Company (GRDC) in Pittsburgh exemplified this attitude. Morris Muskat, Read more